


When In Doubt

by sinspiration



Category: Book: The Alpha's Home, The Protection of the Pack Series - Dessa Lux
Genre: Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Grant and Mike love Jack a lot, Jack's kind of being a dummy, M/M, Multi, Threesome - M/M/M, Werewolves
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-04
Updated: 2018-02-04
Packaged: 2019-03-13 08:14:17
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,363
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13566492
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sinspiration/pseuds/sinspiration
Summary: When Mike woke up curled around Grant and surrounded by sleepy-warm pack scent, it took him a moment to realize Jack was missing.





	When In Doubt

**Author's Note:**

> AO3's dsudis writes original paranormal erotic romance under the pen name Dessa Lux. If you are into paranormal erotica I highly recommend her stuff. And I read her entire Protection of the Pack series, completely honed in on the last book The Alpha's Home and Decided To Write A Thing.
> 
> I had originally intended this to have two chapters, but something happened that sort of stalled me out, so I'm marking this as complete for now. I'll add the second chapter if I am able to write it.

When Mike woke up curled around Grant and surrounded by sleepy-warm pack scent, it took him a moment to realize Jack was missing.

Frowning, he pressed a kiss to Grant’s forehead (who stirred and mumbled sleepily before drifting off again) and got up, swinging his legs off the bed and heading to the bathroom, head cocked to listen to the sounds around the house.

And there it was--the slight sound and smell of someone in the kitchen. That would have to be Jack. Satisfied, Mike went about his morning routine until, dressed and ready for the day, he went downstairs to greet his beta.

“Morning,” Mike said with a smile, as Jack looked up from where he was setting the table.

Jack smiled back, through a flicker of hesitation that was gone as quickly as it appeared. “Hi Mike! I made breakfast.”

Mike kept his confusion hidden and went for appreciative. “Thanks, Jacky. How’d you sleep?”

“Oh, fine.” Jack started carrying plates of eggs and bacon and toast to the table. “You?”

“Good,” he said. “But why are you up so early?” Even Mike wasn’t usually up at six--he and Nick had a special case they were going in to deal with, and it required an early morning. He’d told Jack and Grant about it yesterday, so they’d know why they’d be waking up without him.

“I wanted to make you breakfast.”

“Any special occasion?”

Jack shrugged and ducked his head.

“Hey,” Mike said, holding out a hand,” C’mere.”

Jack went immediately, pressing up against Mike and breathing deep. Mike cupped the back of his neck and pulled him closer. Something about Jack needed comfort, and Mike was going to give it to him. “Thanks for breakfast,” Mike murmured. 

He felt Jack swallow against him, but all he said was “You’re welcome.” He sounded pleased. Jack was the eager-to-please _sort._ Inwardly, Mike shrugged. Maybe this was just another thing Jack wanted to do.

 

-

 

When Grant woke up for real, it was to an empty bed. And that was annoying. He’d known that Mike would gone, but he missed Jack’s warmth and the sleepy kisses he’d come to expect now that he and Jack were finally allowed. He only had an afternoon class today and some homework to do, so he didn’t bother getting dressed before he started the hunt for his packmate.

He found Jack, fully awake, on his laptop in the living room downstairs. Jack had earbuds in, but he looked up and smiled when Grant plopped down next to him. “Hey,” he said, pulling out an earbud. “Good morning.”

Grant grumbled and pressed up against him. “Why’re you up?”

Jack shrugged. “I wanted to make Mike breakfast. There’s plenty left for you.”

Slightly mollified, Grant rubbed his face on Jack’s shoulder before getting up and heading into the kitchen.

 

-

 

Jack had a plan.

Or, well, it had started with a thought.

Namely, he and Grant had been a part of Mike’s pack for a few months now. And for most of it, Jack had pretty much felt on cloud nine. Not only did he get to be with Grant, but he got an Alpha that not only simply tolerated him, but seemed to _love_ him.  Not just as a throwaway, or an afterthought, or a “buy-one-omega-get-a-beta-free” package. 

Jack had a _pack._ He got to eat with them, run with them, experience moons with them, and sleep in the pack bed.

But...he was still a beta. Mike was his alpha. Grant was the pack omega. Even if Jack loved Grant, was...was _in_ love with him, Grant and Mike were _mates_. That’s how it was. 

The fact that Jack was continually allowed into the master bedroom was--it was amazing. But he couldn’t help, now, thinking that maybe he shouldn’t try taking a step back. The master bedroom really should be for just Mike and Grant. That’s how things were with Sam and Rusty’s pack. They had a pack bedroom, the giant sunken thing on the first floor, but Rusty and Sam had their own, separate room, just for them.

The more Jack thought about it, the more he felt like he was being selfish. Taking up too much space. He was a beta. He wasn’t supposed to try to worm his way into the middle; he was the support system. A cog, to make sure things ran smoothly.

Not taking up Mike or Grant’s attention, especially while the other should have it.

So he’d give them space. He could do it. 

He had a plan. 

 

-

 

It was a pretty picture-perfect evening. Mike and Grant were pressed up next to each other on the couch, Mike watching TV while Grant absentmindedly sketched down ideas for the portfolio he was building. Jack was sitting on the floor, within a comfortable distance--not too close that he was intruding, but not so far that it looked like he was trying to sit away from them. He was on his laptop again, earbuds in, tuning out the TV and concentrating on the math lesson he was in the middle of. As soon as he’d gotten the chance, Jack’d signed up for some community college courses. Mike ran a business, and Jack wanted to be useful. So lessons in math, business, and economics it was.

He liked learning, for the most part. And while he loved his pack home, there was something really freeing about being able to take an online class or go to a college campus and just _be._ Besides, the distraction now was a good one. And it gave him reasons and excuses. 

Such as: “I’m going to bed,” Grant said, standing up and rolling out his shoulders.

“Not a bad idea,” Mike said, turning off the TV. “Jack?”

“I’m uh, I’m going to stay up a little longer, if that’s okay? I want to finish this lesson’s homework while it’s fresh in my mind.”

“Good,” Mike said warmly, squeezing him on the shoulder. Jack basked in it. How could he even think of wanting more than what he was already given? “You come on up when you’re ready, alright?”

“Okay.”

Grant wanted a goodnight kiss, and Jack happily gave him one, but he stayed seated on the floor and went back to his laptop as soon as it was done. _See? I’m really working hard. I have a good reason to give you two some space._

The earbuds helped a little later too, when Mike and Grant got into bed together upstairs.

Jack swallowed and focused on his work and tried to tune them out. They were making the most out of the time together, just the two of them. 

That was good.

He didn’t end up going upstairs at all; just curled up on the couch and closed his eyes.

 

-

 

Mike woke up to Grant breathing next to him _good_  

and no sign of his beta.

Nor _smell_ of him, past older scents. Not only was Jack not in bed right now, but it didn’t seem as though he’d made it into bed at _all_ last night. Not even to fall asleep and get up early.

He gently shook Grant awake. “Grant? Baby?”

“M’nuh.” Grant cracked open one eye. “What?”

“Did you see Jack last night, after we went to bed?”

Grant scowled at him. Then looked at the bed, empty of _Jack_ , and scowled harder. He pushed a hand through his hair and sat up. “Where is he?”

Mike held out a hand. “I’m going to find out.” 

Grumbling, Grant got out of bed to follow in the search.

They both ended up in the living room, staring down at Jack curled into a ball on the large, plush couch, one hand dangling over the edge and barely brushing the still-open laptop on the floor.

“Idiot,” Grant muttered, (quietly) stomping over to pick up and close the laptop before setting it on a side table. Jack stirred as he did so, eyes opening and then frowning in confusion. 

“What are you--? I thought I--” He closed his mouth and sat up. “Oh,” he said sounding...relieved? “I fell asleep down here, I guess. Sorry.”

“Next time come to _bed,_ dummy,” Grant said, pressing a kiss to Jack’s forehead. 

Jack smiled up at him, but with that smile came a hint of something uncertain. Again, it was gone in a flash. “Yeah, okay. I’m sorry.” And then, “Sorry, Mike.” 

“Already apologized, champ,” Mike said, stooping in for his own kiss. Jack fairly vibrated under him. “Let’s go get breakfast, huh?”

“Right, yeah. I’m just--I’ll be right back.” Jack took off in the direction of the stairs, presumably to use the bathroom, brush his teeth, change, whatever. In his wake, Mike and Grant shared a look.

“So is it just me,” Mike said as they headed into the kitchen, “Or is something off?”

“Jack’s being weird,” Grant said immediately. He made a beeline for a stool, taking his seat while Mike rummaged around in the fridge to start pulling out ingredients.

“Know why?”

Grant shook his head, frowning.

“Neither of you have class today, right?”

“Yeah, just homework and stuff. And I was gonna go grocery shopping.”

“Okay,” Mike said easily. “Stick close to Jack today then, would you? Give him a little extra attention.”

“Well duh.”

Mike snickered and got down to making breakfast.

 

-

 

The thing was, while something did feel just a little off, Jack wasn’t _really_ acting all that differently. They sprawled over each other while they worked on school stuff, took care of grocery shopping together with their usual banter, and easily navigated making lunch and then dinner like the well-oiled machine they normally were. It was enough that Grant sort of felt like maybe he’d been making something out of nothing. 

Well, until Mike got home from work.

They’d moved to the kitchen after prepping dinner, Grant working on his tablet and Jack bent over a textbook. They both picked up their heads when they heard Mike get home, grinning when he entered the kitchen.

“Hey,” he said. “Something smells good.”

“Us or dinner?” Grant said playfully, getting up to kiss him hello.

“Both.” Mike wound his arms around Grant and pulled him closer, Grant going eagerly. When they broke apart a moment later, Grant was thoroughly baffled to see Jack smiling but hanging back.

“How was work?” he asked.

If Jack’s distance bothered Mike, he didn’t let it show, but he did come closer to Jack and put a hand on his shoulder before going to the cupboard to grab a glass. Jack, Grant noticed, leaned into the touch like he usually did. So what was going on? “Not too bad. Mostly a lot of paperwork. How’s the homework going?”

Jack wrinkled his nose. “Economics is not the most interesting subject.”

Mike chuckled, filling his cup with water as he asked Grant the same question, and that opened up a discussion about Grant’s progress with his current projects, something he was really excited about now that he had the tools and ability to really pursue them.

It was only as he was winding down that he realized Jack had quietly set the table and was plating dinner for the three of them, in the midst of Mike and Grant’s conversation. And that Jack hadn’t, really, had much to say at all.

Jack was quiet through dinner too, but he answered questions, nodding and smiling whenever he was pulled into the conversation. He didn’t start any himself, mostly concentrating on his food, but that--

It wasn’t _really_ out of the ordinary, but something felt funny. Like a sneeze that refused to be an actual sneeze.

He found himself eyeing Jack after they were through, Jack hopping up to clear away the food and dishes and stuff. Which Jack _usually did_ Grant was just overthinking things.

Except for the fact that after dinner, Jack went for his laptop again, taking a seat on the floor like he’d done yesterday. And he was sitting close, but not close _enough._  

It would have been totally normal if the three of them were totally normal, but they weren’t. They were pack. Not to mention that Jack especially was tactile. He drank up touches like he was starving for them, and he kind of was what with how he’d grown up, always on the outskirts except when he and Grant had been able to get away together. 

He seemed relaxed, though. Like nothing was wrong. And when Mike leaned in for a kiss and Grant slid into Mike’s lap to deepen it, Jack radiated pleased-satisfied-wanting and Grant was happily ready for him to crawl onto the couch with them…

But then Jack plugged his earbuds in and turned back to his screen.

 

-

 

“Okay Jack,” Mike said gently but firmly, pulling the laptop out of Jack’s unresisting fingers. “Bedtime. I don’t want a repeat of yesterday.”

Jack yawned and nodded, following Mike up the stairs. Grant had gone up a little earlier. So had Mike, actually. He’d come _back_ down to grab Jack. “Sorry,” Jack mumbled sleepily as they got the the master bedroom. “I want to do well in these classes.”

“And you’re doing a fantastic job,” Mike said, slinging an arm around Jack’s shoulders and pulling him close. “Just don’t forget that you need to take breaks.”

“Mm-hm.” Jack rubbed his face against  Mike’s chest before taking a deep breath and stepping away towards the ensuite bathroom. Mike watched him go before sliding into bed himself, easing down next to Grant who had already drifted off.

Jack came out of the bathroom a few minutes later and paused at the foot of the bed. 

“Jack?” Mike asked carefully, after a minute of Jack not moving. “You coming in?”

Jack shook his head as if to clear it. “Right, yes. Sorry. Tired.” He climbed onto the bed and settled down on Grant’s other side. His breathing evened out almost immediately; he really must have been exhausted.

Mike watched the two of them move closer to each other in sleep, until they were well and truly entangled. It looked right. This was what’d been missing yesterday.

As for why Jack had been a little...distant, Mike’d talk to him tomorrow, see if he couldn’t get to the bottom of what was bugging him.

 

-

 

Jack hadn’t figured out a way to not end up in the master bedroom at night, but he could make sure that he didn’t wind up there until after Grant and Mike had their own time together. And if the scent of them drove him crazy, well, he could deal with it. And he did, sometimes, have to shift to give himself some distance, but that wasn’t thought of as out of the ordinary. Sometimes Grant or Mike even shifted too. That was nice. 

They kept _being_ nice. Including him when they shouldn’t have had too. And that was because Mike was amazing--he was a fantastic alpha and a good person and he wasn’t going to let Jack feel like he wasn’t worth his time. And Grant, even though he was prickly, loved fiercely and completely. 

But Jack was the beta. He wasn’t supposed to be included that way, especially not all the time. He’d take all Mike and Grant wanted to give him separately, but when they were together it should be about _them_ being together. Mike and Grant. Alpha and omega. Mates. In that, Jack was going to be the outsider.

And it was fine.

He wished it was a little easier to give them the space they deserved, but he was managing. For instance, if he went to bed early and left them downstairs for a little while, or stayed up late so they got to have the bedroom… he hung around in his wolf form or went over to Rusty’s to talk to Nick, spent a little more time at school, begged off certain things because of homework.

He could tell that Mike and Grant were a little confused, and Mike had asked a few times if something was wrong, but Jack had said nothing was and he’d been able to be totally honest about it. Because nothing _was_ wrong; Grant and Mike were left to their own devices a lot when they were together, and Jack still got to hang out with Grant during the day, go into work with Mike, be close to them during meals and in the evening. It was enough.

 

-

 

Saturday afternoon, Grant had had enough. Mike wasn’t at work, he and Jack didn’t have class, he knew for a fact that Jack was caught up on all his assignments, and he’d been looking forward to all three of them spending time together. Not to having to track Jack down, only to find that he was taking a nap-- _in one of the guest bedrooms._

“Okay,” he said, shaking Jack awake, “What the fuck is going on?”

Jack blinked sleepily at him. “What do you mean?”

“Why are you _here?”_

“...sleeping?”

“No, in a fucking guest bedroom on the other side of the house!”

“Giving you and Mike some time together,” Jack mumbled before turning onto his side and _going back to sleep._

Grant snarled and grabbed at Jack’s shoulders. “Wake up!”

“G, stoppit.” Jack batted at his hands, eyes still shut. “Go hang out with Mike.”

“What the fuck are you talking about?”

Jack sighed and opened one eye. “Nothing. I’m just tired, okay? I figured I might as well nap here and stay out of the way.”

Grant stared at him. “Even if that wasn’t the dumbest thing you’ve ever said, why are you napping _here,_ instead of in the bedroom or on the couch or in a normal place so we could all actually be together in the same room?” _Like we haven’t been for almost a week._

That realization felt like a punch to the gut. It _had_ been nearly an entire week, without Jack being included. Or no, that wasn’t entirely true--Jack had hung out with him, and had hung out with Mike. But…

But not both of them. When Mike and Grant were together, Jack had managed to separate himself.

“Jack,” Grant said, worry and guilt and upset all spiking inside him, “What’s been going on? What’s wrong?”

“I’d like to know that too,” Mike said from where he was leaning, arms crossed, in the doorway.

 

-

 

Mike watched Jack and Grant sitting on the bed together looking a little like they had when he’d first brought them home; uncertain and unsure. He got why Grant was feeling that way--he himself had no idea what was going on with Jack. Only that it had escalated without him realizing it, and now…

He had plenty of experience with keeping a lid on his emotions, but what the fuck had he done that Jack was hiding in a guest bedroom and radiating fear now that he’d been confronted about it?

“Okay,” he said after a minute and Jack’s silence as he looked wide-eyed at him and Grant both. He came further into the room and sat at the edge of the bed. Trying to give Jack space and not crowd him but needing the proximity. “I think this might be one of those cases where I’ve been a shitty alpha. Jacky, what’s the matter?”

Jack shook his head. “Nothing!” _Lie._ “You and Grant haven’t done anything.” _Truth._  

Wait, what?

“But something’s wrong,” Mike said in the face of that revelation. “Even if Grant and I haven’t done anything, something’s wrong, isn’t it?”

There was a long pause, and then Jack swallowed and met Mike’s eyes. “Nothing’s wrong. I mean it. Things are how they’re supposed to be.”

And, every part of him radiating honesty, Jack _believed_ that. Whatever he’d gotten into his head, whatever had led him to distance himself, he believed that he was doing the right thing.

“Okay,” Mike said carefully. “Maybe you should explain that to me, then.”

Jack glanced at Grant, who was glaring now, and then turned back to Mike, eyes pleading. “I mean it, it’s just--it’s--it’s how a pack should be.”

Mike ran through everything that had happened in the last week, Jack being distant and _how_ he had been distant. How he’d been happy and eager to spend time with Grant and himself, just like usual, except…

Except when they were both together at the same time. _That’s_ when Jack avoided going to bed, or bowed out early, or stayed quiet, or cited schoolwork.

Just like that, it clicked. “Oh baby, Jacky, no.” Jack stilled, staring at him. Mike opened his arms. “C’mere.”

Jack surged forward like he couldn’t help himself, Grant following close behind so that they ended up all tangled together, Jack in Mike’s lap and Grant pressing up against Jack’s side.

“I do not know what is going on,” Grant growled, though he was holding Jack carefully, “But someone better explain.”

“Jack’s been trying to give us space,” Mike said. “Isn’t that right, Jack?”

He felt more than heard the sharp intake of breath. “I…”

“Yeah?” Mike prompted.

Jack lowered his eyes, hunched in on himself. “It’s just what’s right. You two are mates. You shouldn’t have to include me all the time.”

Mike opened his mouth, but Grant there first, smacking Jack on the arm. 

“Ow!”

“You fucking--you--” and then Grant seemed to lose words at all, just making inarticulate noises of fury.

Mike put a hand on Grant’s neck and squeezed, “Grant,” he said quietly.

Grant turned to glare at him. “But he’s wrong!”

“No I’m not,” Jack snapped. “I’m the beta. You and Mike are _mates.”_

“Stop fucking saying that like it means we don’t love you!” 

“That’s enough,” MIke said firmly. Grant snarled and fell silent. Jack just looked resolute. “Jack.”

“Y-yeah?”

“What did we do that made you feel like you shouldn’t be included?”

Jack blinked at him, bit his lip. “Nothing. I just--it--You shouldn’t--”

“Okay,” Mike said, cutting him off. “Different question. Why shouldn’t you be included?” When Jack opened his mouth, he added, “You already said it was because Grant and I are mates. What does that mean, to you?”

“Rusty and Sam are mates,” Jack said, his heartbeat going all over the place. “And they--they’re the alpha and omega of the pack but they’re also _with_ each other. They--they have their own bedroom. In the house. They have the pack bedroom, but they also have one that’s just for them. And Nick and Brody have their own rooms.”

“Do you want your own room?”

“I…” Jack glanced at Grant, who was still glaring. “It would give you two space--”

“That’s not what I asked, Jack. Do you want your own room? For you. Do you want a place to sleep that isn’t with Grant and me?”

Jack dropped his eyes. “No,” he whispered.

“Okay,” Mike said encouragingly. “That’s a start.”

“But--”

“No ‘buts’, Jacky.” Mike nuzzled into the join of where Jack’s neck met his shoulder, pressing a kiss there as Jack inhaled shakily against him. “I don’t know why you got it into your head that we need to be exactly like Sam and Rusty, but you’re not part of their pack, you’re part of mine. And yeah, maybe the usual thing is to have two at the top, but that’s not what we are. It’s _not_ Mike and Grant and Jack the afterthought, it’s all three of us.”

He felt Jack swallow, followed by the scent of immeasurable sadness. “What is it, baby?”

“You’re--you’re going to get more betas. If you grow your pack. You can’t play favorites with one, that’s not--that’s not _done.”_

“Who the fuck cares?” Grant snarled. “What are you going off of, the Merrits? Because I don’t know if you fucking remember, but they didn’t exactly have our best interests in mind. You’re still my best friend and my boyfriend and another beta is _not_ going to change that. _Mike_ didn’t change that and he’s our alpha!”

“You and Mike come first!”

“Fuck that, it’s not a linear model!”

 _“No.”_ Jack pulled back, shoving away from Grant, away from Mike, though Mike wrapped his arms around him and didn’t let him go. Jack struggled feebly before sagging. “It’s exactly like that,” he said, sounding ragged. “Mike’s the alpha. You’re the omega. You two are literally the most important parts of a pack. Without you two, there _isn’t_ a pack. I’m the expendable one, and I’m the one who _should_ be stepping back so you two can run things properly.”

“I am in fucking love with you,” Grant said, grabbing at Jack’s face and staring him down, each word enunciated clearly, “and I am not letting you pull away from what the three of us have because you’ve got some fucked up idea of what does and doesn’t make a pack.”

“Not just a pack,” Mike said, “But a relationship. Jack, the three of us, forget our pack dynamics, are in a relationship. And that _is_ about all three of us. We love you, Jacky. Let us love you.”

Jack let out a sob and buried his face in the crook of Mike’s neck, and Grant let out a wounded noise and moved closer, wrapping his arms around Jack from behind so that Jack was sandwiched between them.

“I think,” Mike murmured, “That we should move to a room that smells a little more welcoming.” He herded Grant and Jack back to the master bedroom-- _their_ bedroom, and when Jack paused uncertainty in the doorway, Grant sniffed and tugged him along until they were standing together in front of the large king bed. Mike gently pushed Jack backwards until the backs of his knees hit the bed. “C’mon,” he said, still going for quiet, for gentle. “Clothes off.”

Jack nodded and tugged off his things, Grant shedding his own clothes too, and they both shifted at the same time, hopping up on the bed and curling around each other. Mike followed not long after, splaying out in his wolf form, making sure he was touching both of his boys.


End file.
